


ghost of mine

by twiglet



Category: Haikyuu!!
Genre: Alternate Universe - Soulmates, Angst, Angst with a Happy Ending, Cheating, M/M, Soulmates
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-10-20
Updated: 2020-10-20
Packaged: 2021-03-09 03:15:22
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings, No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 7,395
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/27117350
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/twiglet/pseuds/twiglet
Summary: People always tell Tsukishima Kei that he should be proud of the scar on his face.That one day, it would help him find his soulmate. But he always laughed at these statements."Fate has a cruel, twisted way of showing me love" he would laugh bitterly.He couldn't help but hate the scar on his face.He just couldn't help but hate the person who had the same one.
Relationships: Hinata Shouyou/Kageyama Tobio, Kozume Kenma/Kuroo Tetsurou, Kuroo Tetsurou/Tsukishima Kei, Tsukishima Kei/Yamaguchi Tadashi
Comments: 11
Kudos: 110





	ghost of mine

**Author's Note:**

> Credits to @mochebun on wattpad for being my trustworthy editor. Thanks for all your hard work!
> 
> (cross posted to wattpad)
> 
> Thanks for all your kudos and love and hope you enjoy!

_People always tell Tsukishima Kei that he should be proud of the scar on his face._

_That one day, it would help him find his soulmate._

_But he always laughed at these statements._

_"Fate has a cruel, twisted way of showing me love" he laughed bitterly._

_He couldn't help but hate the scar on his face._

_He just couldn't help but hate the person who had the same one._

~~~~~

Tsukishima rubbed the back of his neck and scowled as he felt his hands glide over the uneven surface of his scar. It was cold, long and uneven, and Tsukishima hated the feeling of its smooth surface. "It's cold" he mutters under his breath as he rubs his hands together.

Snow slowly drifted down around him, covering everywhere in a layer of ice. The wishing fountain that usually spouted out the water with lights illuminating it was frozen over, the pennies at the bottom of it forgotten.

"Tsukki!" a bed headed male ran across the courtyard and leaped onto the skinny blonde male. "Get off" Tsukishima grumbled as he tried to push away the clingy male.

"No~" Kuroo sang teasingly. Tsukishima looked at the male wrapped around the bottom half of his body and could feel his face heating up. "Aw, birdie, don't get shy with me now~" Kuroo sang teasingly. "Shut up" Tsukishima scowled, but the blush didn't fade from his cheeks.

"Hey, don't get all grumpy" Kuroo straightened up and pinched Tsukishima's cheeks. Tsukishima glared at him and didn't say anything. "Maybe a kiss will make you feel better?" he kissed the tip of Tsukishima's nose.

"Stupid" Tsukishima mutters.

"Tsundere" Kuroo retorts with a smile.

They stay together like that for a minute in their little bubble of time, staring lovingly into each other eyes while they cuddled.

"Rooster head!" Hinata suddenly yells from across the courtyard, bursting their little bubble. Kuroo scowls but then when he looks up at Hinata he gives him his trademark smile.

"Chibi-chan!" Kuroo cooed. Hinata smiled even wider and then ran towards the tall couple over the slippery ice. He skittered and slid from time to time over the slick ground, but didn't fall. The orange sunshine bounced up the steps and met the two with his sunshine smile, his cheeks slightly red, and his breath making little clouds in front of them.

"Hey" he replies breathlessly. "Tsuki!" Hinata greeted the tall blonde cheerfully.

He quickly changed his expression to a confused one before pretending to finally spot Hinata. "Sorry, I confused you with a shrimp for a second" he replies with a condescending smirk. "Hi, Hinata!" he smiles nicely.

"Oi!" Hinata retorts. Kuroo laughs at the twos dynamic. Nothing had changed, even after they had graduated high school. He cleared his throat, trying to catch the small ginger's attention.

"So, where's your boyfriend Hinata?" he asks casually. Hinata's face flares up. "He's not my boyfriend" he mutters. Tsukishima raises an eyebrow. "Your face tells me otherwise" he points out. Hinata's face goes tomato red as he sticks out his tongue at Tsukishima. "Shut up Tsukki!" he yells.

Kuroo clears his throat again, regaining Hinata's attention. "Ah! Kageyama said that he would be here in a few minutes and Kenma stopped to check out a video game store along the way so he should be here in a while" he answered.

Kuroo nodded, seeming deep in thought. Tsukishima narrowed his eyes at him. Kuroo seemed off lately. He knew that they were not meant to be together as they had different scars, but he had fallen for the catlike male all the same.

Ever since the week had started the male had acted strangely. He had complimented Tsukishima a lot more often than usual and had been more touchy-feely. He acted especially strange when someone mentioned the words Kenma Kozume.

A thousand thoughts and questions swirled around in his head, but he was unable to voice any of them. To try to distract himself from his thoughts he played with the wire of his headphones.

Hinata suddenly perked up and so did Kuroo after a moment of silence. "Kenma!" Kuroo and Hinata greeted. Kenma noticeably flinched at the volume of their voices before pulling his hood up over his face and quickly walking over as fast as he could over the slippery frost.

"Hey kitten" Kuroo waggled his eyebrows at the blonde who glared at him in response. "Hey Shouyou" he greeted Hinata with a small smile.

"Kenma! So mean!" Kuroo whined. Kenma rolled his eyes at his childish behavior before returning his attention to Shouyou. Tsukishima narrowed his eyes at him, still playing with the wire in his hands.

The small catlike male unnerved him. He was unreadable and seemed full of secrets. Even though he was smaller than Tsukishima, and a lot less noticeable, Kei always was wary of him and considered him a rival. He would never admit this though.

Kuroo looked at Tsukishima with concern. "Birdie" he tried to catch Tsukishima's attention with the pet name. Tsukishima scowled at the name but whipped his head around all the same. "What" he snapped.

Kuroo looked at him surprised. "Are you okay?" he asks, before caressing his cheek. Tsukishima tsks before smacking his hand away. "I'm fine" he responds tersely.

Kuroo narrows his eyes at him before pinching his cheeks in his hand and glaring at Tsuki. "You're not lying to me, are you birdie?" he hisses. Tsukishima rolls his eyes. "No" he blatantly lies.

Kuroo glares at him before scoffing and letting go of his cheeks.

The two small males were now looking at them, but when they both realized that the two tall people in front of them were looking at them they averted their eyes.

"Tobio!" Hinata suddenly yelled. The awkward setter looked up and greeted him with a shy smile before slowly making his way across the courtyard, slipping and sliding along the way.

When he finally made it Hinata ran up to him and jumped on him, making them fall back into a pile of snow. "Hinata boke!" Kageyama yelled when they fell back into the snow. Hinata laughed in response and kissed the top of his nose.

"I missed you," Hinata said with a small smile. "You saw me yesterday dumbass" Kageyama rolled his eyes and tried to stand up on the slippery ground. "Exactly!" Hinata whined. "It been so long~" he put his hand on his head and acted very dramatic.

"Drama queen" Kageyama rolled his eyes. Tsukishima smirks at this comment.

"Perfect fit for the King Of The Court then" he teases. Kageyama scowls as he glares at him but then returns his attention to his soulmate, giving him a ghost of a smile.

A pang of jealousy runs through Tsukishima. "Why can't I have this?" he asks himself but doesn't voice it aloud. He scowls at the sudden thought. "Don't be stupid, you have Tetsuro. You don't need anyone else" he chastises.

"But do you have him?" a small voice in the back of his head voices.

"Tsukki"

He doesn't lookup. He's frozen, deep in thought.

"Tsukki!"

Tsukishima snaps his head up to look at whoever is talking. Kuroo is behind him with a concerned look on his face, hand on his shoulder.

"Everyone went inside, you might want to get in before you get cold" Kuroo tells him softly. Tsukishima nods and stumbles inside the museum after he gives the people at the tickets for the exhibition.

Kuroo eyed him worriedly but pretended not to notice. He wanted to ask what was wrong, but he knew that wouldn't be wise around this time.

Tsukishima walked slowly around the Museums high roofed exhibit room in a daze. "Tsukki!" Kuroo called after him. Tsukishima turned around with a scowl to face him. "What" he snapped.

Kuroo looked at him softly. "I think the dinosaur exhibit is over there. I know how much you love them, so how about you go there and I'll meet up with you in a few minutes?" he asks softly as he grabs the blonde's arm.

Tsukishima she'd himself from the others touch and scoffed. "Hinata will be there" he muttered.

Kuroo raised an eyebrow at that. "What's so bad about that?" he asks skeptically. Tsukishima tasks. "He's an annoying shrimp" he mutters.

Kuroo gives him a catlike smirk.

"And?"

"He's gonna want to know about dinosaurs so he'll bug me"

"So?"

"What part of annoying little shrimp do you not get?"

Kuroo laughs loudly, gaining the attention of other people checking out the exhibit. Tsukishima narrows his eyes at him, telling him mentally to shut up.

Kuroo stops laughing at him and pulls Tsukishima in close. "Don't worry about it in four eyes. I distracted them for a while so you get some alone time"

Tsukishima scowl deepens after hearing the nickname, but he appreciates the sentiment. "Thanks" he mutters. Kuroo smirks and leans in closer for a light kiss on the nose. "See you later birdie!" he sang. Tsukishima looked after him, feeling disappointed.

"Aren't you coming?" he asks feeling slightly disappointed. Kuroo freezes and yells a response, not turning around.

"I just got to say hello to Kenma first! I'll be over in a minute though!" he calls, before running off.

Tsukishima reaches out for the Kuroo as if he can stop him just by reaching out, but he knows its no avail. He's now left alone in the slowly filling up exhibit room, ditched by his date, and so-called "friends"

He sighed deeply, suddenly feeling alone. He mentally scolded himself for his mental weakness, telling himself he didn't need anyone. He takes the ball of knotted wire out of his hand and quickly unravels it before plugging it into the small MP3 player in his pocket.

Kuroo had pestered him a hundred times about letting him buy his boyfriend an iPod or something more flashy and expensive than that, but Tsukishima always refused. This MP3 player had been given to him by his brother after his last match in 3rd year, so he kept it close to his heart. The one time that Kuroo had "accidentally" thrown in away made Tsukishima lose his cool. Kuroo quickly learned after that not to mess with him again.

Even though the loud music was blasting into his ears his footsteps seemed too loud. They seemed to echo throughout the room. The music was so quiet, so he turned it up a bit more. Even though it hurt his ears he could still hear the single pair of footsteps around the room. It was reminding him of how lonely it was.

He sped up the pace and started to run across the room, pushing past other bystanders who protested in response. After what seemed like an eternity he made it to the Dino Exhibit. He suddenly felt very hot, so he discarded his jacket onto the floor. Usually, he would be a lot warier about how many germs were on the floor, but at this point, he couldn't care less.

He left the jacket on the floor and aimlessly walked around the room, admiring the huge skeletal structures that loomed above him.

He's always admired dinosaurs when he was younger. At first, it was because they were big and scary, but afterward, he admired how smart and cool they were. He was studying them in University now and was considering a job in paleontology.

People supported him, but they found it strange that he was so interested in the past. "You focus too much on the past Tsuki!" they'd always say. "You should focus on your future, and starting a family! How can you provide for your soulmate with a job like that?"

He scowled kicked the ground in front of him when he remembered his parent's words. His brother was the most supportive of him, and so was Kuroo. The people he insulted constantly every day supported him very vocally as well, but he learned how to ignore their compliments and praise. "I'll make it by myself" he muttered to himself.

Tsukishima repeated this phrase in his head over and over again, but the little voice in the back of his head always had to pipe up at the worst time. "You need someone, you know that. You're so weak"

Tsukishima groaned and put his hand on his head. "Stop it" he groaned. The room was too quiet. He pulled off his headphone and let them rest around his neck. He could still hear the faint whispers of the song coming out of the headphones, but the room was silent otherwise. Not only was it silent though,

It was also empty.

He sighs and pulls his hood over his head. He leaned against the nearest wall and waited for Kuroo.

And waited.

And waited.

"Where are you?" he mutters to himself, his narrow eyes scanning the room.

After another five minutes pass, he's decided he's had enough. Tsukishima storms out of the room. "Kuro!" he calls.

No response.

He growls under his breath, before pushing forwards into the next exhibit. It was filled with colorful paintings, with mosaic tiles under his feet. "Kuro, where are y-"

He stops short as his blood runs cold.

He's found Kuroo.

But he's still trying to find his lost his boyfriend.

Kenma is sitting in Kuroo's lap on one of the benches, kissing his boyfriend. They hadn't seemed to notice Tsukishima yet. He cleared his throat, trying to catch their attention.

Nothing.

"Testuro" Tsukishima manages to croak out. The couple freeze. He's frozen too. He hasn't noticed the big fat tears that were running down his face yet. Kuroo slowly turns away from the startled Kenma in his lap.

"Kei, it's not what it looks like-"

"Shut up" Tsukishima cuts him off. "But I-"

"Shut up!" he yells. For the first time in his life, Tsukishima has snapped in public. He was furious, heartbroken, and confused, which was not helping his situation. Kenma pushes himself away from Kuroo, wiping his mouth. He was crying too, which Tsukishima didn't understand.

"Why would you kiss me?" Kenma whispers. "You have him" he points at Tsukishima. Kuroo's eyes noticeably soften. "Kitten-"

"Don't call me that" Kenma chokes out. He's rubbing his lips with his shirt sleeve like he can reverse what just happened if he just wiped it away.

"I did it because we're meant to be," Kuroo tells him softly. Kenma looks at him in a daze. For a second it looks like they were going to kiss again, but Kenma shakes his head slowly.

"I've loved you for a long time you know" Kenma whispers.

Tsukishima and Kuroo look at him in shock. The catlike never expressed his emotions openly so this was a lot coming from Kenma.

"I love you Kuroo. I've loved you and respected you for so long but-" he wiped away the tears from his eyes. "That kiss disgusted me" he spat. Kuroo flinched at his words.

"You had someone. And even though you say we're meant to be, I won't ever forgive you for that" he walks back slowly, covering his mouth. "Kenma, please-"

Kenma backs away slowly shaking his head. "Stay away from me," he says before darting out of the room. "Kozume!" Kuroo yells, jolting out of the bench.

He suddenly realizes Tsukishima is still there.

Tsukishima Kei.

His boyfriend.

"Kei, please hear me out-"

"Stop it" Tsukishima sighs. Kuroo looks at him with pleading eyes, begging him to understand. "I knew we weren't soulmates from the beginning. Hell, I knew this was going to happen from the start" Tsukishima laughs, tears running at full flow now. "But I still went for it. I knew that at some point it would hurt me, but I didn't expect it to be this bad"

Kuroo flinches at his words but doesn't say a thing.

"I think that this is already pretty obvious, but we're done. Go find your soulmate or whatever. It's not like I care anymore" he spits out. "Kei"

"Don't dirty my name like that" Tsukishima shots back. Kuroo recoils. "Well? Go on. Follow your destiny or whatever. I'm going home"

And with that, he leaves Kuroo behind in the room filled with the bright paintings.

The music is still playing. It's a happy song, about love but Tsukishima has had enough. He storms outside of the museum, the upbeat music not helping his mood.

The second he was outside he'd had enough. He takes the MP3 player out of his pocket and out of anger he smashes it on the ground.

He looks at the broken pieces of it in shock.

"No no no" he whispers to himself. He drops on his knees and picks up the shattered pieces of the MP3 player of the ice. A piece digs into his hand and his yelps. A small cut appears on his palm, blood starting to come out of it. He grips his wrists tightly.

"Shit" he whispers to himself. "Shit!" he yells angrily. He bangs his fist on the floor out of anger, the tears flowing at full force. He can't see anything. His glasses blur with the cold and he can feel the cold getting to him as he loses the feeling in his hands.

He sits there for a minute, sobbing pathetically. Nobody gives him a second glance. They couldn't care less. They were stuck in their bubble of time with their fated pair or having a fun outing with their friends and family. They couldn't care less if someone was having a mental breakdown right in front of their very eyes.

After a minute Tsukishima gets up. "Pathetic" he whispers to himself. He wipes the tears out of his eyes. He must look like a mess. He chuckles at that thought. He was a mess, there was no doubting that.

He was so done with today. He just wanted to go home now. He stood up slowly, slipping on the ice but he regained his balance. Tsukishima inhaled and exhaled deeply, trying to regain control over his ragged breathing. The shards of the dark blue plastic stuck out among the white snow and shiny ice.

"Shit" he choked out again, but this time it was more of a laugh. "This is what you get for ignoring your parent's advice" the voice in the back of his head piped up. "Shut up" he muttered under his breath.

He could almost hear his parents gloating over them being right and him being wrong. He would have to apologize to Akiteru about the MP3 player too.

He looked down at the scattered shards awkwardly and decided there was no salvaging it. He sighed sadly and while looking at those shards he kicked snow over it. He had a lot of memories with it, so he thought of it as a little burial for the music player.

It made him feel a little better if he thought of it like that.

He looked up as he sighed heavily and watched the mist come out from his mouth in little clouds, only to disappear right in front of his eyes. Snow started to fall all around him. It was whimsical and made him feel more relaxed. More at home. Maybe him and Kuroo breaking up wasn't so bad after all.

He had this moment to himself after all.

"Tsukki!" he heard someone screech behind him. He flinches when he hears whos talking.

The moment was gone.

He was back at square one.

He doesn't dare look behind him and starts walking forwards speedily.

"Tsukishima!" the voice yells behind him yet again. "Leave me alone!" he screams mentally.

"Leave me alone, leave me alone, leave me alone" he repeats in his head like a mantra. He knows its pointless, nobody can hear him saying this, but he does it all the same.

"Tsukishima, please listen to me!"

Their voice seems frantic. It also seems very close by...

Tsukishima picks up the pace and starts to jog over the slippery ice. He wants to go faster, to just let the ground swallow him up but he knows this isn't possible.

"Tsukishima Kei!" the voice shrieks one last time before hurling themselves at the blond male. They both fall to the ground onto the cold snow.

Tsukishima hears a loud crack when he faceplants but isn't sure what it is.

"Tsukki!" Kuroo yells breathlessly. "Get off of me!" Tsukishima yells, squirming to get away from his ex on top of him. Kuroo flips him over so that their stomachs are touching and grips him firmly.

Tsukishima started to panic. Kuroo's eyes were bloodshot and wide, he looked like he was crying for a long time. "Tsukishima, please listen-"

Somehow Tsukishim had been able to get a hand free and he slapped Kuroo with the first shot he got. Taking advantage of how the other person was stunned by his moves he kicked Kuroo's stomach and backed away.

"Stay away!" Tsukishima warned frantically. Kuroo was frozen in place, not taking his eyes off him.

"I know you're mad at me but please listen!" Kuroo yells at Tsukishima. He glares at Kuroo, disinterested. "Mad? I'm not mad. I'm just disgusted. Now back off" Tsukishima spat. Kuroo flinched at his words but he didn't seem deterred.

He crawled back over to Tsukishima who was backing away frantically. The second he was close enough he grabbed one of his arms with an iron grip.

Tsukishima smacked and hit his arm childishly. "Tsukishima listen to me" Kuroo pulled him in close so he was whispering into the blonde's ear. Tsukishima only glared at him in response, ready to attack if the other got violent with him.

"Please" Kuroo pleaded. "Get off" Tsukishima spat. He felt so weak and vulnerable at this moment, pinned underneath the Blackett's catlike body.

Kuroo shook his head, filled with determination. "Is that scar on your neck fake?" he suddenly asks out of the blue. Tsukishima looks at him in disgust. "Get off me" he repeats.

Kuroo's grip on his arm tightens and he winces. "Is it?" Kuroo asks calmly again. Tsukishima squirmed underneath his touch, feeling disgusted at the feeling. "I can't believe I used to kiss you," Tsukishima thought to himself. "And enjoy it for that matter" he gagged at the thought that used to be so appealing to him.

"No douchebag" Tsukishima rolled his eyes. "I like to draw it onto my neck every day for attention" Tsukishima finished sarcastically. Kuroo glared at him straight in the eye making Tsukshima lose his newfound confidence all over again.

Tsukishima sighed heavily, knowing he wasn't getting out of this situation if he was going to be sarcastic. "Yes," he answered.

Kuroo's eyes widened in shock. "Show me" he commanded. Tsukishima scoffed. "Excuse me?"

"Show me the scar" Kuroo repeated.

Tsukishima shook his head wildly. "No way in hell am I going to show you-"

"It's on your neck, correct?" Kuroo cuts him off impatiently. Tsukishima didn't answer. Kuroo flipped Tsukishima on his back. Panic started to claw it's his way up the blonde's throat.

Kuroo pulled the hood of Tsukishima's jumper down, revealing the long scar running down his neck. He shivers at how cold it was, wishing he grabbed his coat before he left the museum.

"Stop it, please!" tears started to prick at the corner of his eyes and they started to overflow yet again.

"So weak," the voice in his head told him. "So pathetic"

"Shut up" Tsukishima muttered to himself, digging his face into the snow. "Shut up!" he yelled. Kuroo looked at him in surprise, letting go of his hood.

"Tsukishima, I-"

"Get off me please" his voice sounded so weak. He sounded like a small kid all over again. Kuroo was surprised at his change in tone and realises what he had just done.

"I'm sorry"

Tsukishima says nothing. He's frozen on the ground. He felt so humiliated, so disgusting and low.

When he felt like he had the energy he slowly stood up. Kuroo slowly followed him.

They don't say anything to each other. Tsukishima turns around in a daze and walks down the steps. "Tsukishima!" Kuroo croaked out.

Tsukishima stops. He's not sure why. He wants to keep going, to leave his ex behind in the snow but something holds him back. Something was wrong.

Something is wrong.

"I'm sorry" Kuroo croaks out again.

Tsukishima scoffs. "Apologising? Again? Apologies mean nothing if you don't act upon it" he shoots at Kuroo. He doesn't lookup. His eyes seem distant, on another planet.

"That's not what I was apologizing for" Kuroo snapped. He looked up, eyes wide. "That's not what I meant, I-"

"Shut up already," Tsukishima said tiredly. "I'm going home" he sighed, before turning on his heels and walking down the steps. "Tsukki!" Kuroo called after him.

"You don't have any right to call me that anymore," Tsukishima thought darkly to himself. "I found something" Kuroo whispered. It was barely audible but the blonde heard him clear as day. He stopped in his tracks. Every fiber of his being was telling him that this was wrong, that he should leave. Curiosity won over in the end though, and he couldn't help himself.

Something was wrong though. A bad feeling swirled around in his stomach.

"What did you find?" Tsukishima muttered, not looking at Kuroo. He tried to feign disinterest but failed miserably. Kuroo looked up meekly. "I might have just-" he sucked in a deep breath. He was shaking uncontrollably.

"I might have-" he stopped short again as a few tears ran down his cheeks. Tsukishima scoffed. "I'm leaving"

"I might have just found your soulmate"

Tsukishima stopped walking. He turned around with wide eyes to face the other male. "This is a joke" Tsukishima laughed. "Its gotta be, right?"

Kuroo doesn't answer him.

Tsukishima frowns at his answer. "Haha, very funny Kuroo. You can stop with the jokes now" he laughs half-heartedly. Kuroo doesn't answer yet again. His laughter comes to a stop.

"I can-" Kuroo takes in another shuddering breath. "I can show you them if you want" he finished meekly. The blonde raised an eyebrow at the Blackett's behavior. "You realize that is the last thing I want" Tsukishima crossed his arms.

"Its the only way to get rid of the scar though" Kuroo pointed out. "He's right," Tsukishima thought to himself. "Its the only way"

"But then I'll be tied to them for life" Tsukishima points out. Kuroo rolls his eyes. "You're already tied to them for life" he points out. "You don't have to talk to them. Just bump into them and the scar will disappear. You don't have to do anything else" Kuroo pleaded desperately.

Going with his ex to find his soulmate was the last thing Tsukishima wanted to do right now. But its the only way to get rid of the hideous scar running down his neck.

"Fine" Tsukishima snaps tiredly. "I did not sign up for this," he thinks to himself.

Kuroo beckons for Tsukishima to follow him. He follows Kuroo in an uneasy silence.

They walk back into the museum after some sweet talking with the guards, explaining they were trying to get their coat back. They walked past the streams of people about to wander home after being bored by certain exhibits or feeling the cold finally getting to them.

The blonde didn't know how he felt. He was about to meet the supposed love of his life, "the one" as people said. A small bit of him deep down was happy and excited on one hand, but on another, he was sickened, terrified, and nervous. He was about to throw away all the prejudice that he's build up over the years to protect him. He could almost feel everyone's smugness when they notice his scar has disappeared.

They weave in and out of the crowds before finally reaching the room where Tsukishima and Kuroo broke up. The colorful paintings seemed brighter than ever. How could something so colorful and bright in Tsukishima's darkest times?

There was no one in the room. "I knew it" Tsukishima hissed. He walked over to Kuroo who was standing by the entrance to the exhibit and slapped him. "You are such an!" Tsukishima didn't know what to say. He was too frustrated, and his emotions were running wild.

Kuroo didn't say anything. He just raised his hand and pointed at the paintings. "Look" he croaked out. Tsukishima scoffed. "I'm done looking" he tried to walk past Kuroo but was dragged back into the room. "Oi!" he yells.

He tried to wiggle out of the tall male's grip but the other is a lot stronger than him. He's dragged to a large portrait. It was the most simple out of the whole room despite its huge size. Soft pastel shades filled the canvas, contrasting with the bright colors on all sides of them.

Inside of the canvas was a beautiful man. He had soft green hair that rested on his shoulders with little curls, with little stray hairs flying into the air at the top of his head. He had a round strawberry-shaped face with freckles spotting it all over, and rosy cheeks. The features that Tsukishima admired most was his smile. It wasn't fake like a lot of the people in these portraits, it was a real smile that met his olive-green eyes. Tsukishima felt like he could stare into those eyes for days.

"He looks like a strawberry" Tsukishima notes dreamily.

But it wasn't the eyes, the smile, or his strawberry-shaped face that caught his attention.

It was the long scar running down his neck.

The same one that Tsukishima had.

He made a choking noise. Kuroo gave him a worried glance but then looked away.

"I'm sorry" Kuroo apologizes. Tsukishima backs away from him and Kuroo releases his grip. He staggers backward and hits the wall. He slides down and rests his head against it. He feels peaceful right now. The emotions running wild in his head a few minutes ago seemed to have slowed down, giving him a moment to think.

"I don't accept your apology," Tsukishima tells Kuroo tiredly. Kuroo nods feebly. "That's-"

"That's understandable? Is that what you were going to say?" Tsukishima cuts him off. Kuroo bows his head. "It's not understandable. The only reason that I didn't accept it is that I am unsure whether or not you will act upon it" Tsukshima corrects.

"God, now I sound like some philosophical being or something" Tsukishima groans as he covers his face with his hands. "Look" he sighs. "I knew from the start when we both started to date that it would never work. At first, I did it to spite others but I didn't think-" he sighs again.

"I didn't think I would fall in love"

Kuroo winces at his words. He's fucked it all up, and he knows it.

"Look, if you wanted Kenma you should have told me. I'm never going to forgive you for this" Tsukishima continues. Kuroo nods. "I know" he whispers. Tsukishima raises an eyebrow. "You know? Well, then you shouldn't have kissed him. Not only have you fucked our relationship up, you've also lost your soulmate"

Kuroo bows his head as tears start to run down his face. "I'm sorry" he repeats. "Stop with the apologies and pity" Tsukishima spits. He gets up from the floor and storms over to Kuroo, slapping him on the face. Kuroo snaps his head up in shock to see Tsukishima's angry face.

"Wake up!" Tsukishima yells as he grabs the other's collar. "I'm never going to forgive you for what you did, so stop apologizing" he growls. Kuroo nods frantically.

"Kenma is out there feeling broken and confused right now because of what you did" Tsukshima pushes him back onto the floor. "You fucked it up" he growls. Kuroo bows his head. Tsukishima takes in a ragged breath and feels all the anger go out of him.

"Look" he sighs as he pushes his glasses up the bridge of his nose. He feels a crack in the middle of them and realizes they must have broke when he was tackled into the snow. He winced as the sharp edges dug into his nose, but doesn't say anything.

"I don't want to talk to you anymore. I don't want to see you anymore, hell, I don't even want to interact in any way anymore!" Tsukishima sighs. "Just, go find Kenma and be happy"

Kuroo looks up at him in surprise and confusion from the floor. "W-what?"

"You heard me" Tsukishima sighs. "You guys are soulmates. Being apart will only hurt you guys, so just go and treat each other right"

Kuroo nods. "Thank you," he says. Tsukishima scoffs. "Don't think what you did was okay. After this, I never want to see your sorry ass again"

Kuroo nods blearily. "H-hai"

Tsukishima rolls his eyes. "Go ahead and find him before its too late" he grumbles as he puts his hands in his hoodie pocket. Kuroo gets off the floor and gives him a short bow. "I won't bother you again," he says solemnly. "Thank you"

Tsukki raises an eyebrow at his statement. "Just get out of my sight already" he scoffs. Kuroo nods and gives him a soft sad smile for the last time. "See you around Tsukishima Kei" was the last thing he said, and then left Tsukishima alone in the colorful room for the last time.

Tsukishima feels something drip onto his neck and realizes he's been crying. "Huh" he chuckles to himself. "God I'm so weak" he laughs. He uses the sleeve of his jumper to wipe away his tears. "Dammit," he mutters.

While he wipes away his tears he walks over to the empty bench in front of the portrait that Kuroo showed him. When his eyes had finally stopped leaking out liquid he examined the portrait.

The person inside was beautiful. He was lucky. He took out his phone and snapped a photo of it. He wanted to remember this moment forever. He sat there for a few minutes, dreamily admiring the masterpiece in front of him.

"How am I going to find you?" Tsukishima asks himself.

Suddenly he had an idea. If he was smart then it could work. He walked over to the portrait and examined the bottom half of the frame.

Usually, artists would leave their signature here, or the museum would leave a plaque at the bottom explaining who they were, what the painting was called, and the artist who made it.

He examined the intricate details on the frame before finding what he wanted.

Yamaguchi Tadashi

He smiled at the cute name. It sounded sweet, just like how the person looked. "Tsukishima Tadashi would also sound good," he thought. He shook his head the second he thought that. "Come on, you don't need the stupid soulmate! He may look nice, but let's not get ahead of ourselves"

He shook his head and focused on reading the rest of the plaque. He was so excited, this could mean a new start for him-

Suddenly his whole world comes crashing down.

Yamaguchi Tadashi it reads.

....

1700 - 1718

He chokes as he reads those words. His world comes crashing down.

He's heard of cases like this. They were rare, but not unknown. People born in different centuries with the same scars. They were destined for each other, but not meant to be. He always pitied them but he never thought that it would happen to me.

"Fate has a cruel way of showing me love" Tsukishima laughs. He keeps on laughing to himself, even as the tears threaten to spill over. "Why am I so sad?" he thinks. "You knew this could happen"

Tears overflow as his body begins to shake. He's on the verge of a mental breakdown but somehow manages to stop himself from falling apart.

He's unsure of what to think or feel. His whole body feels like its shut down but his mind is running wild. He stumbles backward and falls, kicking the floor to get away from the painting.

"Stupid Kuroo and his stupid ideas" Tsukishima mutters, glaring at the wall. He knows its not Kuroo's fault that his soulmate was born in a different century, but it's better to blame him than fate itself.

He lays there for a few minutes, back against the wall. Minutes pass, and then hours. He's not sure how long he sits there for, but it must have been a long time as the light dims and the temperature drops.

Hinata and Kageyama came to get him a few hours ago, but after seeing his state and then noticing the portrait they put two and two together and left his coat beside him and said they're awkward goodbye. Tsukishima appreciated the sentiment. He should thank them later. They were thick, but they weren't stupid.

As the temperature drops, he starts to shiver and his tears run dry. The coat that lays beside him is covered in the dust from the floor, but he puts it on him all the same. He's cried so much that he's unsure what emotion to feel anymore. He feels empty.

People pass by him as the hours go by and give him dirty looks, but no one bothers to ask what's wrong. He doesn't blame them. He must look like a mess at this point. With messed up hair, wet splotches all over his clothes, and blood and tear-stained face, nobody in their right mind would walk up to him.

The hours tick by and soon the museum is about to close. A security guard approaches him after a while, seeming unperturbed by his looks.

"Sir, we're closing up, we need you to leave" she had a sassy American accent but spoke good Japanese. It took Tsukishima a few seconds to process what she just said, but it wasn't because of her accent. He didn't want to leave. He just wanted to lay there forever, and wallow in his misery. It was pathetic, and he knew it. Didn't stop him from wanting to stay though.

He nods blearily. The guard is unsympathetic of his situation and drags him to his feet and throws him out of the museum.

Usually, he would protest but right now he can't bring himself to. He's thrown out into the cold snow. It looks around 8 o'clock right now judging by how high the moon was right now. It was pitch black, then only sources of light were the streetlights illuminating the area.

Tsukishima sighed and watched as the snow drifted down around him. "It's pretty," he thinks dreamily. He starts to shiver, feeling the cold getting to him more than before. "I need to go home," he thinks to himself.

He gets off the cold icy ground and starts walking down the street. He knows this isn't the way home. Home is the other way around, but he doesn't want to go back there. There was something pulling him in this direction. He had a good feeling about this.

The street lights start to flicker so it became harder to see as he kept on walking down the lonely road. Shop lights went out as he kept walking and more and more of them started to show their closed signs.

It was nice, in a weird way. The snow was starting to fall harder now, and Tsukishima knew he would have to turn back soon. He kept walking down the lonely road, car lights illuminating his skeletal figure as he walked down the lonely road.

He started to slow down as he walked. A shop was open. He paused, confused as to why its lights were still on. He can closer, only to be hit with the aroma of cinnamon and pastries. His breath hitched up. It was a bakery.

He pressed his face against the frosty window like a child and inhaled the intoxicating scent. He basked in its warmth, taking in the smells and the sights of the pastries in front of him.

His body starts to move on its own, pulling him into the bakery. He opens up the door only to be hit with the smells even harder. He exhales the breath he didn't realize he was holding and relaxes his body.

This bakery makes him feel like home. He awkwardly bows to the cashiers who were watching him suspiciously before walking in a bit more and taking a seat in one of the candlelit booths.

He doesn't order anything. He sits there and takes in the sights and smells, trying to forget the incident earlier. After five minutes of him just sitting there, the cashiers avert their eyes, realizing the stranger isn't here to steal anything. It's not like there was anything to steal in the first place.

The bakery was simple but modern. It seemed like the perfect place to take a girl out on a first date. It made Tsukishima that little bit more lonely when he thought about it.

The minutes tick by and he just sits there with his hands in his pockets, not ordering anything. He knows this will get him kicked out in a while but he's just enjoying this moment while he can.

After a few minutes, he hears a click on the table and sees a strawberry cheesecake set out on the table in front of him.

"Hey," a soft voice says as they drag a chair out in front of him before sitting in it. Tsukishima scowls, not looking up. "Leave me alone" he mutters, sinking farther into his hoodie. The stranger laughs softly. "Nah, I'm good thanks" they mused.

Tsukishima glares at the table in front of him, not daring to look at the cheesecake. He was starving but didn't want to eat the stranger's food.

"You can eat it you know, it's not poisonous" they scoffed. Tsukishima looked up at the cheesecake as his mouth starts to water. The stranger pushes it forward. "Eat" the insisted. "You look like crap, this will make you feel a bit better" they bugged him.

"Tch" he pulled it towards him and sat up. The stranger passed him a fork and he hesitantly took it. Their fingers brushed together for a second and a jolt of electricity shot through him. He glared at the fork suspiciously earning him a chuckle from the stranger, before starting to dig in.

The second the cheesecake hit his tongue the taste of the strawberries and cream overtook his senses. He hummed appreciatively without realizing it. He could feel the stranger's smug look as he did that and tried to scowl again. His gaze flicked up for a second and he noticed the green apron and crisp white shirt the person was wearing.

"So they work here" he noted in his head as he took another bite of the cheesecake.

"So" he started casually. "Why are you sitting with me?" he asks suspiciously.

The stranger shrugs their shoulders casually. "Dunno" the stranger answers. "I guess I just felt like it" he grinned. Tsukishima raised an eyebrow before sighing. "Fine" he sighs and reaches around to his neck to scratch it.

His eyes widen as he tenderly touches the back of his neck. "It's gone," he thinks calmly at first.

The smooth long scar he's had since he was a child had disappeared. The long, ugly scar he's hated for so long has disappeared without a trace. Why now? His soulmate was-

He starts to mentally panic.

"It's gone it's gone it's gone it's gone it's gone-"

"What's gone?" the cashier asks innocently. He knows very well what's gone, he's just waited for the other to notice. Tsukishima looks up at the cashier, eyes wide. He did not mean to say that out loud.

His jaw drops when he sees who he's talking to. Soft green hair? Check. Strawberry face and rosy cheeks? Check. Freckles? Check. Olive green eyes? Check...

"My name Yamaguchi by the way" he smirks as he sees Tsukishima's shocked expression. A light blush starts to dust the blonde's cheeks. "He has a nice smile," he thinks to himself. Tsukishima can't help but return it.

"Yamaguchi Tadashi"

...

"It's nice to meet you Tsukishima Kei"

**Author's Note:**

> Hey hey hey! If you enjoyed this, please consider following my Twitter ( https://twitter.com/twig1et) where I post short stories once or twice a week. Thanks for reading and all your kudos!


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